Lady icons of the 20th century
Liz and Audrey, Marilyn, Coco and Grace, Jackie, Aretha and Twiggy… their names alone evoke the glamour of the 20th century. For they are icons rather than celebrities, legends from an age when substance mattered as much as style, and the stars of stage and screen shone as they never had before.
There were, of course, affairs, scandals and addictions, happy-ever-afters and tragic final acts. Liz Taylor married eight times; Grace Kelly wed a prince. Coco Chanel revolutionised fashion – and established herself as a business pioneer; Jackie Kennedy became ‘Queen of America’. Marilyn Monroe died mysteriously and alone, aged just 36, while Dame Maggie Smith, Twiggy and Aretha Franklin (who has sold more than 75 million albums) continue to thrive.
Celebrity – a phenomenon that was largely created by Liz Taylor – is often seen as a devalued currency today, a cult that has become too faddish, too indiscriminate. These 10 iconic women, however, remind us of a time when that was not the case.
As Coco Chanel once said, ‘Fashion passes, style remains’. She could have also been speaking about each of these extraordinary women.
Aretha Franklin; Audrey Hepburn
JACKIE KENNEDY (28 July 1929 to 19 May 1994) Jackie Kennedy was the First Lady who captivated a nation. Born into a wealthy New York family, Jacqueline Lee Bouvier met the young John Kennedy at a dinner party in 1952. After his assassination she married Aristotle Onassis, but her love of fashion and her elegant style defi ned her younger years.
MARILYN MONROE (1 June 1926 to 5 August 1962) The ultimate sex symbol, Marilyn began her career in modelling in 1946, was signed up by 20th Century-Fox and had a string of screen successes. Like so many shining stars, she was troubled by illness and personal problems. Her death in 1962 is still a subject of debate.
ARETHA FRANKLIN (25 March 1942 to present) This Baptist minister’s daughter from Memphis, Tennessee, started singing in church at 10 years old and by the age of 14 had a recording contract. The Queen of Soul, her career has spanned six decades, she has sold in excess of 75 million albums worldwide and has 20 Grammys to her name.
Coco Chanel; Dame Maggie Smith; Elizabeth Taylor
AUDREY HEPBURN (4 May 1929 to 20 January 1993) Named third in The American Film Institute’s list of the Greatest American Screen Legends, Audrey Hepburn started her career in Britain before a Broadway role took her into fi lms. In later years she worked for UNICEF, for which she was awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom.
DAME MAGGIE SMITH (28 December 1934 to present) The undisputed doyenne of British acting, Dame Maggie Smith’s career has stretched over more than 60 years, during which she has played opposite the greats of theatre. Made a DBE in 1990, she continues to captivate with her portrayal of the Dowager Countess in Downton Abbey.
ELIZABETH TAYLOR (27 February 1932 to 23 March 2011) Starting as a child star with MGM she went on to make countless classics, becoming the fi rst female actress to command a million dollars for a role. From the mid 1980s she championed Aids charities. Her life off-screen was full of drama and husbands – a legendary beauty and screen dynamite.
COCO CHANEL (19 August 1883 to 10 January 1971) ‘Fashion passes, style remains,’ she said, and no one shook the sartorial world quite like Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel. Daughter of an unwed laundress, Coco rose from humble beginnings to create chic, simple clothes unlike the corseted styles of the day. The Chanel suit, No5 perfume and ‘little black dress’ are her elegant legacy.
Twiggy; Jane Birkin; Grace Kelly
GRACE KELLY (12 November 1929 to 14 September 1982) The Hollywood star who became royalty, Grace Patricia Kelly (later Her Serene Highness) started her acting career in 1950, meeting Prince Rainier III of Monaco at the Cannes Film Festival in 1955. Her sudden death in a car accident shocked the world. Actor James Stewart remembered her as ‘the nicest lady I ever met’.
TWIGGY (19 September 1949 to present) Lesley Lawson, more widely known as Twiggy, burst on to the fashion scene in the Swinging Sixties and appeared on the covers of Vogue and Tatler. As well as her modelling career, Twiggy also enjoyed success as an actress and in later life has modelled for Marks & Spencer. This year she launched her own range at the store.
JANE BIRKIN (14 December 1946 to present) English-born singer and actress Jane Birkin famously appeared in the 1966 fi lm Blow-Up. With Serge Gainsbourg, she recorded Je t’aime… a song that caused a scandal at the time. Sitting next to a Hermès chief executive at lunch, she told him she couldn’t fi nd a good weekend bag – and the Birkin was born.
The Lady has curated a gallery of these 10 stars for Sonic Editions, the online retailer of rare, limited edition photography. Visit http://soniceditions.com to view the images or buy the prints.
{acepolls 34}
There were, of course, affairs, scandals and addictions, happy-ever-afters and tragic final acts. Liz Taylor married eight times; Grace Kelly wed a prince. Coco Chanel revolutionised fashion – and established herself as a business pioneer; Jackie Kennedy became ‘Queen of America’. Marilyn Monroe died mysteriously and alone, aged just 36, while Dame Maggie Smith, Twiggy and Aretha Franklin (who has sold more than 75 million albums) continue to thrive.
Celebrity – a phenomenon that was largely created by Liz Taylor – is often seen as a devalued currency today, a cult that has become too faddish, too indiscriminate. These 10 iconic women, however, remind us of a time when that was not the case.
As Coco Chanel once said, ‘Fashion passes, style remains’. She could have also been speaking about each of these extraordinary women.
Aretha Franklin; Audrey HepburnJACKIE KENNEDY (28 July 1929 to 19 May 1994) Jackie Kennedy was the First Lady who captivated a nation. Born into a wealthy New York family, Jacqueline Lee Bouvier met the young John Kennedy at a dinner party in 1952. After his assassination she married Aristotle Onassis, but her love of fashion and her elegant style defi ned her younger years.
MARILYN MONROE (1 June 1926 to 5 August 1962) The ultimate sex symbol, Marilyn began her career in modelling in 1946, was signed up by 20th Century-Fox and had a string of screen successes. Like so many shining stars, she was troubled by illness and personal problems. Her death in 1962 is still a subject of debate.
ARETHA FRANKLIN (25 March 1942 to present) This Baptist minister’s daughter from Memphis, Tennessee, started singing in church at 10 years old and by the age of 14 had a recording contract. The Queen of Soul, her career has spanned six decades, she has sold in excess of 75 million albums worldwide and has 20 Grammys to her name.
Coco Chanel; Dame Maggie Smith; Elizabeth TaylorAUDREY HEPBURN (4 May 1929 to 20 January 1993) Named third in The American Film Institute’s list of the Greatest American Screen Legends, Audrey Hepburn started her career in Britain before a Broadway role took her into fi lms. In later years she worked for UNICEF, for which she was awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom.
DAME MAGGIE SMITH (28 December 1934 to present) The undisputed doyenne of British acting, Dame Maggie Smith’s career has stretched over more than 60 years, during which she has played opposite the greats of theatre. Made a DBE in 1990, she continues to captivate with her portrayal of the Dowager Countess in Downton Abbey.
ELIZABETH TAYLOR (27 February 1932 to 23 March 2011) Starting as a child star with MGM she went on to make countless classics, becoming the fi rst female actress to command a million dollars for a role. From the mid 1980s she championed Aids charities. Her life off-screen was full of drama and husbands – a legendary beauty and screen dynamite.
COCO CHANEL (19 August 1883 to 10 January 1971) ‘Fashion passes, style remains,’ she said, and no one shook the sartorial world quite like Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel. Daughter of an unwed laundress, Coco rose from humble beginnings to create chic, simple clothes unlike the corseted styles of the day. The Chanel suit, No5 perfume and ‘little black dress’ are her elegant legacy.
Twiggy; Jane Birkin; Grace KellyGRACE KELLY (12 November 1929 to 14 September 1982) The Hollywood star who became royalty, Grace Patricia Kelly (later Her Serene Highness) started her acting career in 1950, meeting Prince Rainier III of Monaco at the Cannes Film Festival in 1955. Her sudden death in a car accident shocked the world. Actor James Stewart remembered her as ‘the nicest lady I ever met’.
TWIGGY (19 September 1949 to present) Lesley Lawson, more widely known as Twiggy, burst on to the fashion scene in the Swinging Sixties and appeared on the covers of Vogue and Tatler. As well as her modelling career, Twiggy also enjoyed success as an actress and in later life has modelled for Marks & Spencer. This year she launched her own range at the store.
JANE BIRKIN (14 December 1946 to present) English-born singer and actress Jane Birkin famously appeared in the 1966 fi lm Blow-Up. With Serge Gainsbourg, she recorded Je t’aime… a song that caused a scandal at the time. Sitting next to a Hermès chief executive at lunch, she told him she couldn’t fi nd a good weekend bag – and the Birkin was born.
The Lady has curated a gallery of these 10 stars for Sonic Editions, the online retailer of rare, limited edition photography. Visit http://soniceditions.com to view the images or buy the prints.
{acepolls 34}